Okay, this evening we want to
take a look at Psalm 71. Psalm 71 for just a moment. I'm entitling the message from
the theme of this psalm. The theme of this psalm is the
theme of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. The theme of the
gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ is Christ our righteousness. Five times it's mentioned in
this Psalm, Psalm 71, that the Lord Jesus Christ is our righteousness. Notice verse 16, I will go in
the strength of the Lord. I will make mention even of thy
righteousness. I will make mention of thy righteousness,
even thine only. Now, would you dare say anything
of the righteousness you have in the flesh? Well, I don't have
any righteousness in the flesh. All my righteousness is before
God, he says, are filthy rags. But we do rejoice in the righteousness
of God revealed in the gospel. You remember Romans 1.16, Paul
said, I'm not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, the power of
God unto salvation to everyone that believeth, for therein is
the Righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith. That's what's
revealed in the gospel. This righteousness that's revealed
in the gospel is the righteousness we so desperately need before
God, and it's only provided in Christ. Remember the scripture,
God had made him sin for us, who knew no sin, that we might
be made the righteousness of God in Christ. Now it's no surprise then that
his name is Jehovah Sid Canoe, the Lord our righteousness, Jeremiah
23, 6. He's called Jehovah Jiver, the
Lord will provide. He provided for himself a sacrifice
for sin, and he's provided for his people a perfect, justifying
righteousness. So it's no surprise that the
Lord has called the Lord our righteousness. Jeremiah 23 6
it's also no surprise that the church of the Lord Jesus Christ
his bride his people His covenant children are called in Jeremiah
33 16. She shall be called the Lord
our Righteousness now, isn't that amazing? His name is the
Lord our righteousness Your name is the Lord our righteousness
You see we wear his name As we are one with Him and united with
Him, what is true of the head, I've told you this many times,
what's true of the head is true of the body, right? By one man's
obedience, the Lord Jesus Christ, shall many be made righteous.
John put it this way in 1 John 4. As He is, so are we in this
world. As He is, so are we in this world. How is he? Righteous. Where is he? Enthroned. Where
is he? Accepted in the beloved, the
throne of God, and we are one with him. What's true of him
is true of us. Where he is, we are. Seated in
the heavenlies in the Lord Jesus Christ. Now, it's a sad thing
in our day, it's a sad thing in our day that this most Religious
world is ignorant of the justifying righteousness provided in the
gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore they're going about
to establish a righteousness of their own doing. Isn't that
what mainstream religion is all about, because they're ignorant
of God's righteousness provided in the gospel, they're going
about to establish a righteousness of their own doing. And a fatal
mistake they make, they make the fatal mistake saying that
their morality is righteousness. Morality is nothing but sin before
God. Now it may look good in our eyes,
and I'm all in on morality, but morality is not righteousness.
Is it? No, sir. No, sir. You remember
the Lord says of those Jews, they being ignorant of God and
ignorant of the righteousness revealed in the gospel, therefore
they're going about to establish their own righteousness. They
had not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God
revealed in the gospel. And then he says, Christ is the
end of the law for righteousness to everyone that believe it.
Paul said, I do not frustrate the grace of God for righteousness
come by the law, come by your doing. Then Christ. dead in vain. We don't obtain
righteousness by our doing nor do we maintain righteousness
by our doing. It's the free sovereign gift
of God. Blessed is that man whom the
Lord imputeth righteousness without your doing. Free gift of God. Sinners who believe the gospel,
like Abraham. Abraham believed God as counter
to him for righteousness. If God's granted you faith, and
if God's granted you faith, you look to the Lord Jesus Christ
alone, and looking to him, we receive Christ who is our righteousness. Every believer resting in him
is as righteous and holy as God. How good you have to be to stand
before God accepted, holy. That's only in Christ. This was
David's strong plea and only plea before the Lord. As he says in verse 1 of Psalm
71, in thee, O Lord, do I put my trust. Let me never be put
to confusion. And those who trust the Lord
will never be confused. They know, as Paul said, I know
whom I have believed. Let me never be put to confusion.
Those who rest on that rock of ages, God said, behold, I lay
in Zion for a foundation of stone, a tritone, a precious cornerstone.
He that believeth on him shall never be put to confusion. Never
be ashamed, will never be forced out. Now deliver me, see verse
two. He is our deliverer, and he delivers
us in righteousness. David didn't say, Lord, deliver
me in my righteousness. He didn't say that, did he? Deliver
me in thy righteousness. This is righteousness established
in Christ. And then cause me to escape,
escape the wrath and judgment of God, escape the condemnation
of my sin. Incline thy ear unto me and save
me. GOD BE MERCIFUL TO ME, THE SINNER. SAVE ME. SAVE ME IN THY RIGHTEOUSNESS. NOW THAT'S A GOOD PRAYER. SAVE
ME, LORD, IN THY RIGHTEOUSNESS. BE THOU MY STRONG HABITATION,
VERSE 3. Where unto I may continually
come, our Lord said, come unto me. Come unto me, I'll give you
rest. Continually resort. We look to
him always. And looking to him, we come to
him. Coming to him, we believe on him. Thou hast given, I love
this statement. Thou hast given commandment to
save me. God who commanded the light to
shine out of darkness has shined in our hearts. to give us the
light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.
Apart from God giving commandment to save me, I'd never be saved. No man ever would be. It's not
of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that
showeth mercy. Thou has given commandment to
save me. Thou art my rock. Thou art my
fortress. Deliver me, O my God. Oh my God,
the Lord is my light and my salvation. Out of the hand of the wicked,
out of the hand of the unrighteous and cruel man, for thou art my
hope, good hope. Oh Lord God, thou art my trust
from my youth. Thou art my trust. David's strong
and only plea was deliverance in Christ. David's only hope
before the Lord is the same as our hope today. Psalm 27 says
what? The Lord is my light and my salvation,
whom shall I fear? Christ is our hope, our salvation,
our rock, our refuge, our righteousness before God. Christ is all in
all, isn't he? He's everything. In Adam, all
in Adam, what happened? We lost righteousness. By one
man's disobedience, many became sinners. All have sinned and
come short of the glory of the Lord Jesus Christ. But in the
Lord Jesus Christ crucified, we have a justifying righteous
restored and established by his doing. Where sin abounded, grace
does much more abound through his doing, through his dying,
through his faithfulness. That's why Paul said, I count
everything else lost, dung, and ruined. When he goes to Philippians
chapter three and lists everything he was in religion, circumcised,
a Pharisee, Hebrew of Hebrews, and then he says, concerning
the righteousness which is in the law, he said, I was blameless. That's until he met the Lord.
And then he said, I count all things law for the excellency
of the knowledge of Christ Jesus, my Lord, for whom I've suffered
the loss of all things and count it but done that I may win Christ
and be found in him who is our righteousness. My righteousness
I have, he says, which is not according to the law, but that
which is through the faithfulness of the Lord Jesus Christ. Being
guilty sinners that we are, we not only need a justifying righteousness
before God, but we need also our sin put away by the sacrifice
of Christ, and that's exactly what he did. When he by himself
purged our sin, he sat down on the right hand of God. He appeared
once in the end of the age to put away sin by the sacrifice
of himself. We have an atonement in Christ.
We have a payment for our sin in Christ. The blood of Christ
cleanses us from all our sin. and he justifies us in the Lord
Jesus Christ by his blood, and he freely imputes unto us his
righteousness before God. Only in Christ crucified do we
see the law of God honored, mercy given, not at the expense of
God's justice. God is a just God and Savior,
just and the justifier of those who believe in the Lord Jesus
Christ. Look down to verse 8. Verse 14 and verse 8. Let my
mouth be filled with thy praise and with thy honor. Let my mouth
be filled with thy praise and with thy honor. Look down at
verse 14. But I will hope continually and
will yet praise thee more and more. What's David praising the
Lord about? Well, the Lord is my salvation
and the Lord is my righteousness. Look at verse 15. My mouth shall
show forth thy righteousness and thy salvation all the day,
for I know not the numbers thereof. Look at verse 22 in Psalm 71. I will also praise thee with
the psaltery, even thy truth, O my God, I'll sing with a harp.
O thou holy one of Israel, verse 23, my lips shall greatly rejoice
when I sing unto thee, my soul which thou hast redeemed, my
tongue also shall talk of thy righteousness all the day long.
For they are confounded and they are brought unto shame that seek
my hurt. Now here's the point I'm driving
at and you kind of understand what David is saying here. Believers
love TO TELL OTHERS ABOUT THE RIGHTEOUSNESS THEY ENJOY IN THE
LORD JESUS CHRIST. BELIEVERS LOVE TO PRAISE GOD
FOR THAT RIGHTEOUSNESS THAT'S FREELY GIVEN OF GOD. NOW LET'S
TURN TO A FEW PLACES. I TOLD YOU, TURN TO PSALM 22. TURN WITH ME AND LET'S READ A
FEW OF THESE. DAVID OR IN THE PSALMS WE READ
ABOUT THE RIGHTEOUSNESS OF THE LORD. IN PSALM 22, VERSE 31,
LET'S GO BACK TO VERSE 30, PSALM 22, VERSE 30, A SEED SHALL SERVE
HIM, IT SHALL BE COUNTED TO THE LORD FOR A GENERATION. THEY SHALL
COME AND SHALL DECLARE HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS UNTO PEOPLE THAT SHALL BE BORN
THAT HE HATH DONE THIS. THEY SHALL COME AND DECLARE WHAT?
His righteousness. Look, a few pages over, find
Psalm 31. Psalm 31, verse 1. In thee, O Lord, do I put my
trust. Let me never be ashamed. Deliver
me in thy righteousness. Bow down thine ear to me, deliver
me. Speedily be thou my strong rock for a house of defense to
save me. For thou art my rock, my fortress,
therefore for thy namesake, lead me and guide me, deliver me in
thy righteousness. You kind of got the point, don't
you? Let's read on. Psalm 35, turn there. Psalm 35,
verse 27, let them shout for joy and be glad that my favor,
that favor my righteous cause, yea, let them say continually,
Let the Lord be magnified, which hath pleasure in the prosperity
of thy servant. My tongue shall speak of thy
righteousness and of thy praise all the day long. When Isaiah
saw him, he spake of his glory, didn't he? Psalm 40, turn over
there. Am I going too fast? Psalm 40,
verse nine. Psalm 40, verse nine. I delight to do thy will, O God.
Verse 8, thy law is within my heart. I have preached righteousness. This is the Messiah. In the fulfillment
of Scripture, I preach righteousness in the great congregation. Lo,
I have not refrained my lips, O Lord, Thou knowest. I have not hid Thy righteousness
within my heart. I have declared Thy faithfulness,
Thy salvation. I have not concealed Thy lovingkindness
and Thy truth from the great congregation. We tell out His
righteousness, don't we? Make much of His righteousness,
don't we? Let's see if we can find one more. Psalm 51, 14. Psalm 51, 14. Deliver me from
blood guiltiness, O God. Psalm 51, 14. Thou God of my
salvation, my tongue shall sing aloud of thy righteousness. Surely, Psalm Isaiah 45, surely
shall one say in the Lord. What did we say? Surely shall
one say in the Lord. Isaiah 45, 24, I have righteousness
and strength in the Lord. Believers don't talk about creature
merit, creature righteousness, other than to discredit it, other
than to say all of our righteousnesses are filthy rags, other than to
declare the truth of God's scripture that said there is none righteous,
no, not one. There is none that understands,
there's none that seeks after God, they've all gone out of
the way. A man in his best day is altogether,
a man in his best day, I mean on your best day, you're still
zero in God's sight. In yourself, in your flesh, vanity,
vanity. But we do love to tell others
about Christ our righteousness. Now I can brag about that a while.
Christ our righteousness. We sing in glory unto him who
loved us and washed us from our sin in his own blood. To him
be all the honor and praise, both now and forever. And that
scripture we read Sunday. But of him are you in Christ,
who of God is made unto us, what's that word? Righteousness. Sanctification
and redemption. Let others talk about their righteousness
if they please to do so. I'm talking about their personal
morality and their good works and how much they've done for
the Lord. It's only a talk, it's only the talk of a fool. Those
who made wise in the gospel, they talk of Christ our righteousness. You see what David's saying in
this? Now I found this statement in a message I brought from Psalm
71, 29 years ago. 29 years ago, and I'm not moved,
maybe I've grown a little bit in grace and the knowledge of
the Lord Jesus Christ, and I've not moved one inch from declaring
that salvation is of the Lord. And here's that statement from
1991. I know what effect, what effect
self-righteousness brings in the life of an unbeliever. I know what effect self-righteousness
brings in the life of an unbeliever. You know what it brings? Four things. No peace. No peace. Therefore, they try to make peace
with God through their own doing. How many times have you heard
a lost religious man saying, I'm trying to make peace with
God? Forget it. Christ is our peace. He made peace for us. He made
peace for us. Don't turn to this, but this
is a good scripture on that point. The work of righteousness, that
is His righteousness, shall be peace. And the effect of righteousness,
quietness and assurance forever. Isaiah 32, verse 17. But those who are unbelievers
who are going about to establish their own righteousness, they
have no peace. No peace. The wicked are like the troubled
sea. They have no peace. Secondly, they have no assurance.
I'm talking about the unbeliever who goes about to establish a
righteousness of his own, who is ignorant of the righteousness
of God revealed in the gospel. They have no assurance. Therefore,
they try to find assurance in their works to prove that they
are righteous, don't they? What did that Pharisee pray in
Luke 18? Lord, I thank you. I paid tithes. I've done this, I've done that,
I've done that. Surely I'm not like that man over there. And
then those in Matthew 7 said, Lord, we preached in your name.
We've done many wonderful works in your name. Surely you pay
attention to what we have done in your name. He said, depart
from me you that work iniquity. You see, there's no assurance
in seeking righteousness in your works. You see, to the believer,
we don't seek assurance. We don't seek assurance, we seek
Christ. He's our assurance. The third thing I wrote down
years ago, The effect of self-righteousness brings in an unbeliever's life
is no peace, no assurance, no refuge. No refuge and no hope. Therefore they build a refuge
of lies, and they hide in it, thinking they can hide from God.
Remember he said, I'll lay that line and that plummet? and I'll
destroy your refuge of lies. The only refuge that we can hide
in is the one that God provided for us. He is our refuge. He is our strength. Fourthly,
what is the effect of self-righteousness in the life of an unbeliever?
Because they have no peace, no insurance, no refuge, and they
have no righteousness. Morality, the best you can do,
will never get it done. You may impress men. I guarantee
you, you won't impress God. He said it's nothing. Away with
it! It's nothing but iniquity. Now, verse 16, 17, 18, and 19
in our text, I will make mention of thy righteousness, even thine
only. I will go in the strength of
the Lord. I will make mention of thy righteousness, even thine
only. O God, thou hast taught me from
my youth. Hitherto have I declared thy
wondrous works. Now also, I can identify with
verse 18 now. I couldn't so much 29 years ago,
30 years ago. Now when I'm old and gray-headed,
O God, forsake me not. And he won't. Until I have showed
thy strength in this generation, and thy power to everyone that
is come, thy righteousness also, O God, is very high. Who hath
done great things, O God, who is like unto thee? Thy righteousness and thy salvation. Where sin abounded, grace does
much more abound. That as sin hath reigned unto
death, Even so might grace reign through righteousness. Grace,
did you catch that? Grace reigns through righteousness
unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord. There's a very vital
link and connection between salvation established and righteousness
established in the Lord Jesus Christ. You cannot expect salvation
without the holy law of God being honored. Thank God the Lord is well pleased
for his righteousness sake. He will magnify the law and make
it honorable. Our Lord said, I didn't come
to destroy the law, I came to establish it upon my faithfulness,
upon my obedience unto God. Did he get that done in his life? Every precept of the law of God,
the Father said, this is my beloved son in whom I'm well pleased,
hear ye him. Every aspect of the penalty of
the law of the Lord Jesus Christ satisfied, the guilty must die. What happened at Calvary? He
died for our sin, according to the scripture. So as we go in
the strength of the Lord and preach the righteousness of God
provided in the gospel, whether we do it as a young man or an
old man, we do so because we've been taught of God. That's the
lesson he teaches us. All those who have heard and
have learned of the Father, they come to the Lord Jesus Christ,
who is the Lord, our righteousness before God. Now I can think of
several reasons why we make mention of the righteousness that's provided
in the gospel, even the Lord Jesus Christ. Several reasons
why we says, that I will make mention of thy righteousness,
even thine only. You see, he's a holy one of Israel. Why do we make mention of his
righteousness only? Because it's true. Because it's
revealed in the word of truth. We believe God and therefore
we preach Christ who is our righteousness. David said, I believe, therefore
have I spoken. Secondly, to convince men of
their sin against God and their need of Christ, who is the believer's
righteousness before God. Job said, I've heard of thee
by the hearing of the ear, but now I see thee, wherefore I abhor
myself. I repent in dust and in ashes. We preach the very character
of God as holy. And we preach the Lord Jesus
Christ as a sinner's need before God, who is all our salvation. We preach the righteousness of
the Lord Jesus Christ to show the way of salvation in him,
that he is a just God and Savior, that he suffered once for our
sin, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us unto God.
And we preach the righteousness of the Lord Jesus Christ, even
thine only, to comfort the sheep of the Lord Jesus Christ. Remember,
don't turn, let me get it for you. Remember Isaiah 40, comfort
you, comfort you, my people, saith your God. What do you comfort
the sheep of Christ with? Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem,
crying to her that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity
is pardoned, for she hath received of the Lord's hand double for
all her sins? Surely, I quoted this a minute
ago, I'll read it to you now. Surely shall one say in the Lord,
I have righteousness and strength. Even to him shall men come and
all their incense against him shall be ashamed. In the Lord
shall all the seed of Israel be justified and glory in Christ,
who is the Lord our righteousness. One more verse, look at verse
19, I'll let you go. Thy righteousness also, O God,
is very high. You see, He's the Most High God.
He's the Holy One of Israel. Thy righteousness Oh, God is very high. Who has
done great things? Oh, God, who is like unto thee? The righteousness of God provided
in the gospel is a very high and holy thing. It's as high
and holy as God. It's the righteousness of God
provided to us in Christ. It's from him and it lifts us
up to glory. Now I'll have you turn to this
one. Turn over just a couple pages. Psalm 85. Psalm 85. Verse 10. This is familiar to
you, I know, because I've quoted it many times. Psalm 85, 10. Mercy and truth are met together.
Righteousness and peace have kissed each other. Truth shall
spring out of the earth. Righteousness shall look down
from heaven. Yea, the Lord shall give that which is good and our
land shall yield or increase. Righteousness shall go before
him. Now this is Christ. He ascended
when he by himself purged our sin, sat down on the right hand
of the throne of God. Righteousness shall go before
him and shall set us in the way of his steps. The Lord Jesus Christ is exalted
and seated, and we are exalted and seated in Him. I believe
it says that over here. Don't turn. Let me see if I can
find it and read it to you. Over here in Ephesians chapter
2, where it says, But God, who is rich in mercy, for His great
love wherewith He loved us, even when we were dead in sin, hath
quickened us together with Christ. For by grace are you saved. raised
us up together, made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ,
that in the ages to come, he might show the exceeding riches
of his grace and his kindness toward us through the Lord Jesus
Christ. Isn't this good news? Thy righteousness,
O God, is very high. Who hath done great things, O
God? Who is like unto thee? There's none like him. He said,
I am God, beside me there's none other. There's no God like our
God. There's none like Him for greatness.
There's none greater. There's none like Him for goodness.
He said, I am the Lord. The Lord is good. There's none
like Him for power. He has all power to save. There's
none like Him for mercy. He delights to show mercy. His
justice, His truth, His faithfulness, there's none like Him. The perfection
of His nature, there's none like Him. Or the works of His hands,
there's none like Him. He's a wonderful counselor of
the mighty God. He's to be praised and reverent
and adored as He's revealed in Holy Scripture. Holy and Reverend
is his name. He has all power to save to the
uttermost those that come to God by him, saying he ever lived
to make intercession for us.